Head-To-Head: Nexus 6P Vs. iPhone 6s Plus

Big-Screen Battle

Consumers interested in buying a new smartphone have a tough decision to grapple with as they face the upcoming holiday season.

On one end is Apple's 5.5-inch iPhone 6s Plus -- a hit among phablet fans who praise the phone's touch recognition capabilities, camera quality and flagship iOS software.

But on the other end is Google's new Nexus 6P smartphone, manufactured by Huawei, which is bigger, at 5.7 inches, less expensive, and contains several other unique new features. The iPhone 6s Plus, which was unveiled in mid-September, is currently available, while preorders for the Nexus 6P started Sept. 29.

Between prices, processors and RAM, which smartphone takes the cake? Following is a head-to-head comparison of Apple's iPhone 6s Plus and Google's Nexus 6P.

Smartphone Sizes

The iPhone 6s Plus, as a 5.5-inch device, appeals to lovers of big-screen phones -- but that's still smaller than the Nexus 6P's 5.7-inch screen, despite the two phone bodies having almost identical dimensions. The Nexus 6P also edges out the iPhone 6s Plus on weight, weighing only 178 grams where the iPhones 6s Plus weighs 192 grams.

The physical construction of the two phones is similar -- the iPhone 6s Plus contains an aluminum body with an ion-strengthened glass on the front, while the Nexus 6P has an aluminum body with Gorilla Glass 4 display.

Packing In Pixels

Google's Nexus 6P has an impressive WQHD AMOLED display with a resolution of 2,560 x 1,440 and a pixel density of around 518 pixels per inch for image sharpness.

The iPhone 6s Plus' Retina HD display contains 3-D touch display and display zoom capabilities, but packs in less pixels with a 1,080 x 1,920 resolution and pixel density of around 401 pixels per inch.

Processors

Apple's iPhone 6s Plus contains a 64-bit Apple A9 chipset, which is a dual-core processor running at 1.84GHz. It also contains a graphics M9 co-processor with six-core graphics. As is typical for midlevel Android phones, Google's Nexus 6P packs a 64-bit octa-core Qualcomm Snapdragon processor.

Operating System

Apple's iPhone 6s Plus runs on iOS 9, Apple's newest operating system, which contains an array of new features such as improved capabilities to switch between screens and new embedded apps for users. This software is upgradable to iOS 9.0.2.

The Nexus 6P runs on Google's newest software out of the box, the Android Marshmallow operating system, which also contains new features. These include simplifying app permissions, support for Google's mobile payment system, Android Pay and, most importantly, support for fingerprint scanners for phones.

Security Features

Both the iPhone 6s Plus and Nexus 6P contain fingerprint authentication features -- the Nexus 6P contains a fingerprint reader on its back, for logging into the phone and for Android Pay mobile payments, while the iPhone 6s Plus contains a fingerprint reader on the front of the phone for logging into the phone and making Apple Pay payments.

Beyond external security features, both phones also contain security safeguards embedded in their operating systems. However, Android is notoriously less secure than iOS -- according to the 2015 Verizon Data Breach Report, 96 percent of mobile malware was targeted at the Android platform as opposed to Apple's iOS, and more than 5 billion downloaded Android apps are vulnerable to remote attacks.

Storage And Memory

In terms of memory, the Nexus 6P contains 3 GB of RAM over the iPhone 6s Plus' 2 GB of RAM. The Nexus 6P comes in 32-GB, 64-GB and 128-GB models, while the iPhone 6s Plus comes in 16-GB, 64-GB and 128-GB models. Neither phone contains microSD storage.

When it comes to connectors, the Nexus 6P contains a Micros USB Type-C connector while the iPhone 6s Plus utilizes the Thunderbolt connector.

Battery

The iPhone 6s Plus contains a 1,715 mAh lithium-ion battery that contains enough juice for 12 hours of Internet browsing, 14 hours of HD video viewing, and 16 days of standby mode. Little was revealed about how long the Nexus 6P's 3,450 mAh lithium ion battery will run. Neither phone contains wireless charging capabilities.

Camera

The iPhone 6s Plus is known for having an exceptional camera -- it contains a 12-megapixel camera and 5-megapixel front-facing camera with 4K video recording capabilities at 30 frames per second.

With a 12.3-megapixel camera and 8-megapixel front-facing camera, the Nexus 6P may have beat the iPhone 6s to the punch in terms of megapixel graphic resolution, but the iPhone 6s Plus also contains enhanced features like optical image stabilization.

Price And Availability

The iPhone 6s Plus is more costly, with prices ranging from $749 for a 16-GB version to $949 for a 128-GB version. Available in gold, space gray, rose gold and silver, the phone is currently available in Apple retail stores and online.

Meanwhile, the Nexus 6P sells for $499.99 for the 32-GB version, up to $649 for a 128-GB version. The Nexus 6P is available in aluminum, frost, gold and graphite colors.